Renzo Piano Building Workshop (RPBW) teamed up with NORR Architects & Engineers to design the new Toronto Courthouse, located just northwest of Toronto City Hall. Designed to strengthen the city’s civic core, the new courthouse will embrace the streetscape and offer a variety of public amenities. The building will be RPWB’s first project in Canada and it will aim for LEED Silver certification.

After over a year’s worth of collaboration between the two firms, the recently unveiled designs for the Toronto Courthouse present a vision of transparency with an emphasis on public space. At the heart of the project will be a 20-meter-tall glass atrium that RPBW says “creates an immediate and strong image which will extend the public realm into the building, as well as expressing the public nature of the courthouse within the city.” The new building will also help consolidate the law courts currently spread out across Toronto.

Despite its highly transparent appearance, the Toronto Courthouse will be fitted with high-security features. The building will also house an education center on the history of and challenges facing the indigenous justice system. The project is expected for completion in 2022.